Something's wrong with Harper!

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MyBoyHarper

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He's been shedding badly for a while now, but something is definitely wrong. Within the last few weeks, his shedding has gotten worse. He's molting to the point that he's going bald. All his hair sticks up like it's ruffled but when you touch it, it comes out in massive clumps and patches, leaving bald spots behind.

He's also gotten severely aggressive. I mean SEVERE. I can't get near him, touch him, or even look at him without his "boxing" and grunting,and trying to attack. Feeding him is a scary situation, and I tried to give him hay a minute ago and he attacked the bag, then me. I have t o hold him down gently, with my hands over his eyes, just to feed him.This is the only way I can keep him from attacking.

Otherwise, he has a great appetite, and is his generally playful self at night. I can hear all his bells ringing and toys being pushed around quite a bit during the night.

What's wrong with him? Is this stress? I have added two bunnies to the room (first JJ, then Thumper). I also set JJ's cage on top of Harper's about a week ago, but this has been going on before I put the cage up there.

If it is stress and it is due to the other bunnies, what can I do? Ican't really move the other two to another room, it's not much of an option. If the rabbits are the problem, will Harper ever adjust? Am I making him sick? Help!
 
It could be stress I think, youbrought not one buttwo new males into HIS territory. Spice was the sweetest boy ever and whenI brought Zoey home he attacked my hand because I smelled like her. Although the shedding hting sounds like an odd reaction to it but it is possible. I mean, anyone who's taken their rabbits to the vet knows that their rabbit might not be shedding bad but once they get to the vet's office they are blowing their coats and chunks fall off.
 
I would say the aggression is probably due to smelling the other bunnies on you. Think about it from his perspective...he was just forgiving you for that awful surgery and all that medication and such, and then you bring home not one, but two other males to share his room!

Im not sure what the solution is if you have to house them all in the same room. Maybe try the vanilla scent thing and rub some on him and the other two to try and get their smells to be a bit similar? Or can you move Harper's cage so hes in a closed off area (closet?)orsomething so he cant see the others?

About the hair, that could also be stress. Any itching or redness? I fits gets bad, I would take him to the vet just to be sure its not mites or something..

Poor Harper. You guys have had a rough couple of months!
 
Haley wrote:
About the hair, that could also be stress. Any itching or redness? If its gets bad, I would take him to the vet just to be sure its not mites or something..
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I agree with that, since you brought new rabbits home, it's entirely possible he got mites from one of them, even if the others are not showing and signs.

And I just noticed you said his cage is under one of the others, can you move his cage to the opposite side of the room or something? I don't think he should be totally removed because he will never get over it but putting another cage right on top is probably making it 10 times worse than it has to be for him. The stress it's causing him is probably not a good thing.
 
I called my friend from the rabbit rescue, and after talking to her and you guys, I have made some decisions. First, I decided to rearrange the spare bedroom where my guinea pigs are, and house JJ and Thumper in there temporarily. They seem to adjust to anything and are so stress free and laid back, I highly doubt they'll mind being in there. Next, I am going to clean my room real good, and clean Harper's cage with vinegar (since JJ is on top of his cage).

Then, I am going to leave JJ and Thumper in the other bedroom for a few weeks and see if Harper's shedding and attitude gets better at all. Ifit does, it means it was the presence of JJ and Thumper. Then I'll just have to go from there... I don't really want to house them in the spare bedroom (I won't get to see them as much), plus it'll only solve half the problem. Harper will still smell themon me when I go from holding one to the other, ect. But Harper is my baby, and I won't sacrifice his health. I just had a 30 min. conversation with my friend and like she said, something is badly bothering him. He's stressed,nervous, and aggressive. In the end, this means that he is HIGHLY unhappy and very miserable. And when he's unhappy, I'm unhappy. I just had no idea that bringing Thumper and JJ into my home would cause this(call me an idiot...)

Also, as far as mites and vets, it's not mites. They've been checked.Harper's not scratching and his skin isn't red at all. He's also been to the vet twice already for the shedding, and the vet says he is perfectly healthy, but is shedding way too much for no apparent health reason. Obviously it's most likely stress. Now I'm stressed.

In the end, I KNOW everyone here see's me as a bad bunny owner. I know that for a fact. :(Because I originally had to part with Haley, and then decide to get two others that are now making Harper stressed. None of this was my intentions however. JJ was a pure surprise (as a Christmas gift), and I was just trying to get Thumper out of a bad situation.


 
Really? Well then if you're a bad bunny owner- I'm even worse. I got Tiny and Tio and Kyo. Then I got Ginger Spice and Sugar Bear...then I got Puck....then I got started breeding lionheads.

Man.....if you're bad - I hate to think what I am.

(Stop beating yourself up - hindsight is always 20/20).

MyBoyHarper wrote:
In the end, I KNOWeveryone here see's me as a bad bunny owner. I know that for a fact.:(Because I originally had to part with Haley, and thendecide to get two others that are now making Harper stressed. None ofthis was my intentions however. JJ was a pure surprise (as a Christmasgift), and I was just trying to get Thumper out of a bad situation.
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MBH, stop beating yourself up, a lot of us are guilty of things like that. I mean I took Eli back to the breeders and3 days laterI brought home Zoey. Although I really could not keep Eli because his medicalcondition did not go so well with winter in Alberta but still, if you are beating yourself up so should I and many others on this forum.
 
LOL Jan, you're not bad, you rock. :D

I guess I just feel horrible because if it is stress from the other rabbits, it's my fault. *I* brought them into the home, and now he's sick. I guess I can't help but feel guilty and like a bad bunny-parent.:?
 
MBB, I understand. I guess another big concern is, what if I have to get rid of JJ and Thumper? I feel like I am abandoning them, and should've thought twice before getting them. I feel horrible about possibly having to give them up, especially after giving Haley up. Even though Haley wasn't much of a choice. She was extremely aggressive and couldn't even be touched. Her new family lets her have run of the house 24/7 but says she's more of a "ferel cat"than a rabbit. You know... wild.

I also feel bad because after I had to give up Haley, I got two really nasty PM's from fellow members, one accusing me of being a reckless bunny owner. I won't bring up the PM or the member, but that's what got me worried about potentially having to possibly give up JJ or Thumper.I just didn't want anyone here to see me as a bad bunny owner.

Okay, back to my baby in question. Does anyone here think another vet visit is warranted? Does it sound more like a 'mental' problem than a physical illness?


 
It sounds like a very bad case of stress to me. But if you are that worried about it a vet visit might put your mind at rest.
 
Thanks MBB. As I mentioned, I definitely know it's not mites since they've been checked. A vitamin deficiency originally crossed my mind before I thought about the two bunnies being in the room. I originally thought that maybe he was lacking a certain vitamin. But he gets his veggies, he's on a good pellet, and gets lots of hay. So I pretty much crossed out the vitamin defiency possibility.

I'm going to go ahead and move the two bunnies first thing in the morning to the other room. It's almost 11:30pm at night, and the cages are pretty large. Otherwise I'd get it done tonight. Thanks again for the advice!
 
When I brought Charlie into the house, Misty would attack me like I was her worse enemy. If I smelled like him the LEAST bit, she would tear at me, bite me, jump at my face. She has this evil wild look to her and she would run across the room to bite me, chase me around the house.... this lasted for at least a month.

It sounds like Harper is just not pleased to be sharing HIS territory with 2 new male bunnies. Are they both neutered? I can't remember ... but un-neutered = smelly... so if either JJ or Thumper are not - then that will make it worse.

Also - YOU are his territory also, and now you have betrayed him by smelling like some other bunnies... that's why Misty was punishing me for so long, because I betrayed her by loving on another bun.

She almost killed me the first time she saw me cuddling Charlie.

:?

Moving JJ and Thumper to the other room with likely help things. Don't beat yourself up too much - just have to give Harper time to adjust.

___________
Nadia
 
Hey Honey Pot, that does make sense -- me being his territory. I was always his "other bunny". He's a very dominant bunny and was always attached to me, so I can see where he doesn't want me being around other bunnies. As far as neutering, JJ is neutered, but Thumper isn't.

Hopefully moving them into the other room will help. If it does, I'll go from there about what to do with JJ and Thumper. Harper is so prone to GI problems, I'm worried about the stress causing a bout of it.Hopefully once they are moved, he'll go back to being happy and care-free.
 
I agree too, that it does sound like stress.Your plan to move them sounds like a good one...just go with that and see what happens. I'm sure you'll be able to find an arrangement that will suit Harper. :) And about being a bad bunny owner: Sometimes I think the sign of a great bunny owner is when the person beats themselves up over the fear that they are a bad one....ironic, huh?




 
I'm sure you'll be able to find an arrangement that will suit Harper. :) And about being a bad bunny owner: Sometimes I think the sign of a great bunny owner is when the person beats themselves up over the fear that they are a bad one....ironic, huh?
:yeahthat

I dont see you as a bad bunny owner at all. I think it is great that you care enough to be on here worried sick about the i health. Being on here asking question proves it.

Good luck moveing them and please try to relax for a bit.:hug:You will figure it out!:party0002:



Oh and whoever sent you those pms need to get off their :soapboxand think a bit. They must not have all the facts
 
MBH, you are not a bad bunny owner a tall. You learn as you go. All buns will have different reactions to situations. You are figuring it out and making changes to please everyone, I think that's great! :D
 
I think that its possible that it could be physical even if it's not mites...some animals are carriers of sarcoptic mange and can give it to another animal who will exhibit symptoms. A vet can take a skin culture to determine the cause. I am dealing with this right now with a foster guinea pig and rabbit that were surrendered together. The guinea pig looks fine but the rabbit has a big bald spot near his tail going up towards the spine. I will betaking the bunny in tomorrow...he may have been over-groomed by the pig(they're separated now) or he may have mange or rinworm. Your Harper's attitude could be because he's in pain as mange is painful. If the separation doesn't help the problem I would get him to the vet. T
 
Molt in itself can be stressful and a drain on the immune system. I would give him a little Nutri Cal until he gets through this.

Of course, I would also attempt to rule out other possible causes of the condition.



Pam
 
I haven't read the whole thread yet, so forgive me for mentioning this before I have all the information, but did you mention these PM's to a mod when you got them?

I had something like this happen recently, and the mod's handled it beautifully!! Things are okay now, and that particular member and I have handled things nicely between us...but it was a bit rough.

Anyway, I just want to put out there that if you ever have a problem like this again, you can feel absolutely free to let one of the mod's know, and they'll help you out. This site is EXCLUSIVELY for people to be respectful and loving and helpful to one another, and it gets strictly enforced. :)

It's something about this site that has always been one of the main reasons for my being here so often, and wanting to help out so much here.

So...feel free, Hun. You don't have to take abuse by other people. We'll help ya out! :)

:hug1:heartbeat:

And now I shall return to reading the rest of the thread...:D

HUGS!!

Rosie*

MyBoyHarper wrote:
I also feel bad because after I had to give up Haley, I got two really nasty PM's from fellow members, one accusing me of being a reckless bunny owner. I won't bring up the PM or the member, but that's what got me worried about potentially having to possibly give up JJ or Thumper.I just didn't want anyone here to see me as a bad bunny owner.
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